Runaway
by AlexSnape-36
Summary: One man stands between Severus and his return to the wizarding world. All Severus has to do is prove he's guilty. One woman could be his key back to magic...if only Severus could bring himself to sacrifice her.
1. Freedom

_Freedom_

Shiloh Maddox looked on with fury rushing through her veins as Brogan Harris, a short wizard in his late fifties, knocked her mother to the floor, aimed a kick at her stomach, and sent them both to their room. Her mother was small and frail as it was, a stark contrast to the way she used to be. Shiloh didn't know how much longer they could survive in this house. Neely Madison, Shiloh's mother, was only a couple of inches taller than her twenty year old daughter. They both had long, straight, dark brown hair and eyes that changed from blue to green randomly. Shiloh was slim, but her mother was gaunt. Brogan only fed them whatever scraps he and Rylan had left over from their meals, which normally wasn't much. Shiloh tried to steal food on occasion, but more often that not the consequences far out weighed the rewards.

Rylan, Brogan's right hand man and Shiloh's arranged fiancé, was tall and dark skinned with violent dark eyes and black dreadlocks. He did Brogan's dirty work in exchange for Shiloh's hand. Not that Brogan had much to be afraid of. He worked for the ministry and they trusted him. No one would ever believe that he was an abusive husband, keeping his wife and stepdaughter against their will. They got away with everything…but not tonight. Tonight Shiloh had had enough. She was tired of it all, and it was the perfect evening to cause a little mayhem.

Brogan had an important dinner with his superiors this evening and had warned Shiloh and her mother to stay silently out of sight. Shiloh, on the other hand, suddenly felt disinclined to grant his request. Screw the consequences.

* * *

><p>"You'll pay for this, Shiloh!" Brogan yells from down the hall after escorting his guests out of the house.<p>

Her plan had almost gone off without a hitch. She had spiked the food with a little something that would make them all sick. Rylan had caught her too late to prevent it, but he had caught her none the less.

She flies into the room she shared with her mother and heads straight for the window. Her mother quickly jumps up and magically locks the door. Brogan had decided to allow her to keep her wand because of the public events she was forced to attend with him, but had warned her not to use it against him. Rylan had taken and hidden Shiloh's wand in his room.

"I told you not to mess with him!" Neely scolds her fearfully, helping Shiloh open the window.

"I wasn't messing with him! I just made a little side trip on my way to the bathroom. I thought they could use a little help with preparing dinner." Shiloh smirks.

"Shiloh!" Neely snaps.

"I'll get us out of here, mum. I promise." Shiloh attempts to assure her, glancing back at the door as it flies open. She quickly jumps out the window, forcing her body to relax so that she could survive the two story fall mostly unscathed. She lands on her knees but quickly gets to her feet, striking out towards the woods and hoping she could lose them there. She couldn't leave her mother, but if she could avoid them long enough she wouldn't be in as much trouble as she was right now. She just had to keep running until they've had time to calm down. Brogan had opted to stay behind at the house, but Rylan was already hot on her heels.

She was finally cornered while trying to cross the stream that lined the boundaries of Brogan's property. Rylan had finally resort resorted to using magic to catch her. She knew the momentary freedom wouldn't last forever. It never did.

Back at the house he shoved her back into her room and locked her and her mother in. The window was still open. Shiloh frowns. Usually he made a point of blocking off all possible escape routes. It had taken Shiloh five months to learn how to do wandless magic well enough to take the charm off the window. After a moment she shrugged it off to his concern regarding his ill superiors that made him forget.

"You really want out of here, don't you?" Neely sighs, standing up to face her.

"Don't you?" Shiloh asks in frustration. "I told you not to marry him to begin with! We can't stay here forever, and he's not just going to let us go! We have to do something!"

"Listen, no matter what happens, I don't want you to worry about me. Understand?" Neely tells her with a small smile.

Shiloh frowns in confusion, "What's going on?'

"While they were chasing after you, I went to Rylan's room and stole your wand. I enchanted the window so that I could leave it open for you without him noticing. You need to hurry. It won't take him long to notice that your wand is missing, and you need to get a head start." Neely urges her, handing her the wand.

"You're coming with me…aren't you?" Shiloh demands, fear rising up in her.

"No! Shiloh, No…I would just slow you down. You know that." Neely objects, glancing at the door.

"I'm not leaving you!" Shiloh snaps forcefully, "You'll die here by yourself and I wouldn't know where to go anyways so it would all be for nothing!"

"There's an old woman who lives in the woods not to far from here. I think her name is Retrea. I've passed her house several times when Brogan takes me out to search for potions ingredients. Find her and get her to help you."

Shiloh flinches as Rylan yells her name.

"You have to go!" Neely insists, pushing her towards the open window.

"I'll come back for you. I love you, mum." She promises, hugging her tightly,"I'll be back with help."

The door flies open and Shiloh flies out the window, landing harder this time than she had the first time. Neely watches as she flees out into the darkness.

"I love you, too," Neely whispers, bracing herself and turning towards the door as Rylan storms in, "Brogan took her."


	2. Retrea

Chapter 2 Retrea

Shiloh knocks nervously on the door and enters the quaint little cottage without waiting for an answer. She had lost Rylan and Brogan in the woods, but it would only be a matter of time before they caught up with her.

"Hello?" She calls softly, hoping this was the place her mother had been talking about.

"What do you want, stranger?" An old woman with silver hair and dark grey eyes asks defensively, emerging through a side door.

"Are you Retrea?" Shiloh asks hopefully.

"Maybe I am, perhaps I'm not, State your business." The woman snaps.

"I'm looking for Retrea. My mother's trapped in a house on the eastern edge of the forest and we need help." Shiloh starts to explain.

Before she could go on the woman cuts her off, "You're from Brogan's house?"

"Yes!" Shiloh answers quickly, relief rushing through her. If she knew Brogan surely she'd understand why they needed help…

"Get out." The woman snarls. Shiloh's relief vanishes just as quickly as it had appeared. The woman turns away from her and heads down a hallway, into one of the other rooms.

"Look, I need help. I'm being chased and if I don't figure out what to do soon I'll end up right back where I started from!" Shiloh pleads, following her.

"I'm not going to help you! I don't want anything to do with that man." She snaps, "I suggest you leave before whatever you're running from catches up with you."

"At least give me something to eat," Shiloh insists, "I'm tired and filthy, and I haven't eaten in-"

"Just three more reasons for you to get out of my house!" She cuts her off, "Your presence is defiling my home!" Her face darkens for a moment before adding, "There's another one of Brogan's mutts approaching. I suggest you leave before you're trapped here."

Shiloh growls in frustration but turns around and exits the same way she came in. Retrea watches her leave and disappear back into the forest.

"Severus, Jaxon! She calls, "She's gone!"

"Obviously," Severus Snape replies, coming out of a secret passageway behind her. "You ran her off. Would you like to tell me why?"

"Why shouldn't I have? I don't owe her anything." Retrea snaps.

"She was looking for help against Brogan." Severus counters, "That's the same reason I'm here. I may have been able to use her…and for the record, you don't owe me anything either."

"Of course I do. You're my future son-in-law. My daughter's fiancé." Retrea objects, taking his hand.

He jerks away. "Keep dreaming." He turns away from her and starts out of the house, hoping the other woman hadn't made it too far yet. If that girl and her mother stepped in to testify against Brogan, then Brogan would be discredited and Lucius could step in and ensure that Severus would be able to return to the wizarding world. Not only that, but he could also have his licenses reinstated.

"Leave the girl alone, Severus! She'll only bring trouble!" Retrea calls after him. When she hears the front door shut, she turns to Jaxon, her daughter. "Follow him and make sure that girl knows he belongs to us. If she knows what's good for her, she won't want anything to do with him."

"I don't even like him! He's too old for me. Let her have him and let's find someone else." Jaxon objects.

"If you ever want to get out of this house and make a life for yourself, you'll do as I say." Retrea demands.

"But Mom-"

"Jaxon Nicholle Harris, if you don't go make sure that girl knows that man is yours, I can send you to your brother's house and you can stay there for a month!" Retrea threatens.

"I'm going! I'm going, alright?" Jaxon snaps back, unwillingly giving in. The last thing she wanted was to be trapped with her brother for an hour, let alone a month.


End file.
